Penn State, Pegula Ice Arena to host first NHL preseason game

Penn State men’s hockey season ticket holders will have an opportunity to purchase tickets for the Sabres-Wild preseason game at Pegula Ice Arena starting July 18.Image: Patrick Mansell

Penn State, Pegula Ice Arena to host first NHL preseason game

June 29, 2016

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State and the Pegula Ice Arena will host their first National Hockey League preseason game, with the Buffalo Sabres and Minnesota Wild slated to clash in Hockey Valley.

The contest is set for 7 p.m. Monday, Sept. 26, on the opening weekend for Pegula Ice Arena’s fourth year. Penn State men’s hockey season ticket holders will have an opportunity to purchase tickets for the Sabres-Wild game starting July 18.

“We are thrilled to host the first of what we hope will be many NHL preseason games in Pegula Ice Arena,” said Sandy Barbour, Penn State director of athletics. “We are very appreciative of the NHL and the Sabres for their partnership to bring a preseason game to Penn State and further grow the game in central Pennsylvania. I know there will be significant interest by Penn Staters and hockey fans in Hockey Valley and beyond to be a part of the first NHL preseason contest in our magnificent facility.”

The Sabres are owned by Terry Pegula, who joined with his wife, Kim, to donate $102 million to Penn State to fund the state-of-the-art Pegula Ice Arena and establish an NCAA Division I men’s hockey program in 2010. Penn State launched men’s and women’s varsity hockey programs in 2012-13 and moved into the spectacular Pegula Ice Arena for the 2013-14 season.

“We look forward to being the first team to bring professional hockey to Penn State at Pegula Ice Arena,” Buffalo Sabres President Russ Brandon said. “It will be a privilege for our organization to play in the state-of-the-art facility that Terry and Kim Pegula envisioned.”

Tickets for the game will range from $25 to $80 for Penn State men’s hockey season ticket holders, Nittany Lion Club members and students, as well as the public, if any tickets remain. There will be a fee for event parking, with the parking details to be announced.

The ticketing procedure for Sabres-Wild preseason game will be as follows:

Hockey season ticket holders will have a right of first refusal period for their season ticket locations, up to the number of season tickets purchased for the 2016-17 campaign. The right of first refusal period will be July 18-29.

The pre-sale for Nittany Lion Club members and men’s hockey season ticket holders for all 2016-17 Penn State individual games will be Aug. 4-8. Season ticket holders who want to purchase additional tickets for the NHL game can do so during the pre-sale. There will be a ticket limit for all games during the NLC pre-sale, with details to be announced.

Tickets for all 2016-17 Penn State games and the Sabres-Wild contest will go on sale to the general public Aug. 9, should any tickets remain.

Penn State student tickets for the NHL preseason game will be $25.

Details on the student season ticket sale for the 2016-17 Penn State men’s hockey season and the Sabres-Wild contest will be announced later this summer.

A map of Pegula Ice Arena with the ticket prices by section for the NHL preseason game can be found here.

Penn State men’s hockey season tickets for 2016-17 are sold out, with a 95 percent renewal rate. Pegula Ice Arena has been sold out for 51 of 54 games in its first three seasons, including the last 31 contests. During the 2015-16 season, the Nittany Lions averaged 6,093 fans in the 5,782-seat facility, helping Penn State to a 12-5-1 record in Hockey Valley en route to the program’s first 20-win campaign.